Study in Russia

Russia is a highly educated country with over half of its residents holding a university degree. Russians have rich, centuries-old educational traditions. Russian universities provide their students with comfortable studying and living conditions and help them adapt to the country. Russian universities train a wide variety of specialists, both in engineering and the humanities, and regularly place in the top of international rankings. Education in Russia is much more affordable than in the USA or UK. Moreover, international students have the opportunity to study for free at the expense of the Government budget. Each year Russia accepts students from all over the world, from nearly 170 countries, and you can join them.
Studying in Russia is both prestigious and advantageous. You can be sure that you will acquire all the knowledge you need in your chosen subject. Russia has a lot of universities, so you have a wide choice. All you need to do is to choose a programme you like, prepare the documents required, come to Russia, and start studying. You can either study abroad on a commercial basis or for free with the support of the Russian Government, which allocates a certain number of state-funded places for foreign students at universities every year. Read our detailed instructions about what you need to do to enrol in a Russian university. There are a number of different forms of funding, grants, and scholarships, so every student can choose the most suitable option.

Why Study in Russia?

Certain groups of foreigners, Russians living abroad and immigrants can apply for state scholarships on the same terms as Russian citizens once they pass entrance exams or Uniform State Examination (EGE). Moreover, every year Russian government provides so-called ‘state-funded spots’ at universities to international applicants. In 2017, 15,000 such spots were granted.

Academic Competitions for International Applicants

Russia hosts dozens of academic competitions, but the rights of preferential enrolment at all Russian universities are only given to the winners of the All-Russian Olympiad of School Students and academic competitions (level 1, 2, and 3) included in the list annually approved by the Russian Ministry of Education. The benefit can be of two types: enrolment at a university without an entrance examination or the award of maximum marks in the Unified State Examination (EGE) in the student's specialised subject in the competition (or for an additional entrance test). The type of enrolment benefit depends on the level of the competition and the status of the diploma (winner or awardee). Each university makes its own decision on which privileges to provide and publishes the corresponding announcement every year on its website. It is established by law that the winners of the final of the All-Russian Olympiad shall be enrolled at universities without entrance examinations in the corresponding subject. The same rule may apply to the winners of the level 1 competition from the list of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia. The winners of levels 2 and 3 are usually granted extra points to their state exam result (check the information with university admissions boards).